A taste of chocolate’s history with Marcello Martínez-Vega
In the corridors of Palazzo Mora, there is a scent that pulls you to the second floor. A bitter but also sweet scent that, like breadcrumbs, you follow all the way up until reaching the surprise that awaits at the end. In a brown-coloured room appears El País del Cacao, an encompassing installation by Marcello Martínez Vega that offers a journey through time on one of the world’s most appreciated sweets, chocolate.

El País del cacao by Marcello Vega | Photo credits: Federico Vespignani
Marcello Martinez Vega is an Ecuadorian-German experimental artist whose work is truly versatile, ranging from video projections combining sound and image to objects, sculptures and site specific installations. His own experiences are the source of his inspiration, which he alternates and combines with cavilations about the pluricultural and multilingual social groups and their conditions in Ecuador. Today, Marcello has found a second country and home in Fribourg from where he creates his masterpieces but, despite the distance from his homeland, Ecuador continues to be a protagonist in his work, with special attention to miscegenated Afro-Ecuadorian and indigenous ethnic groups from the Ecuadorian highlands.
For the art biennial Personal Structures, Marcello Vega has joined the European Cultural Centre with El País del Cacao. Performed in art, the main subject of this project is focused on the cultural ritual which transforms the bitter cacao seeds into the crummy, delicious and sweet delicacy that we enjoy today. This project, however, is not only about the process itself but also about all the aspects and influences that surround it.

El País del cacao by Marcello Vega | Photo credits: Federico Vespignani

El País del cacao by Marcello Vega | Photo credits: Federico Vespignani
As the artist explains, nowadays, the cacao industry suffers great problems, beginning with the old trees and obnoxious plages that burden them, but also the unstable political problems, poverty and child labour in the cacao farms. In face of this situation, private organisations have been created with the aim to preserve, protect and care. These organisations care for good practices, fair labour, respect for ecology, sustainability and social responsibility.
El País del Cacao is a response to the industry’s and cultural situation, as well as a reflection of its entire history. Through ceramic vessels and traditional utensils, visitors can read about the past of chocolate. For instance, one can learn about the diachronic evolution of the word cacao: “cacahua” from the Mesoamerican Olmeca’s mixe-Zoque language almost 3.500 years ago to the loan word “cacahuatl” of the Nahuatl language until adapting to the Spanish phonetic system as "cacao".

El País del cacao by Marcello Vega | Photo credits: Federico Vespignani
In addition, the installation is also a piece of Marcello’s own history. El País del cacao has been inspired by the artist’s personal experience during his childhood in a town in Ecuador. “Always on Sundays during summertime, there was a smell that seduced me every morning at my grandfather's house. It was the smell of the burning eucalyptus, of happiness and joy ー the sense of being together and a feeling of protection were conceptualised in that smell”, remembers Marcello. These Sundays were the days that Marcello and his family drank chocolate and the days in which Carmela, the great housewife, carefully worked on the chocolate ritual. This important and beautiful moment has permanently found a corner in his mind, a moment never to forget, but especially a piece of his heart, a memory to hold onto forever.
For Marcello Vega, cacao carries both personal and historical value. On the one hand, it is filled with the smell of childhood and protection, while on the other, it is the recollection of a cultural practice and the people who employ and protect it. El País del cacao offers a taste of chocolate’s history through the artistic and intimate view of artist Marcello Martínez Vega.
You can visit Marcello Vega's installation at Palazzo Mora until the 27th of November or discover his work by exploring the virtual tours online. or by visiting his profile online or website.